2 hurt as fishing vessel catches fire, sinks off Palawan

At least two fishermen were hurt when a fishing vessel suddenly caught fire and eventually sank off Cuyo in Palawan, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported on Tuesday, May 16.

The PCG said the FV Victory 89, a fiberglass-made fishing vessel owned by Frabelle Fishing Corporation, was razed by fire while in the vicinity waters of Imalaguan Island in Barangay San Carlos around 9:40 a.m. on Monday, May 15.

A photo handout from the PCG indicated the name of the vessel as FV Victor 89.

Citing accounts from the crew of the vessel, the PCG said a loud "blast" was heard at the auxiliary engine compartment of the vessel. An auxiliary engine enables uninterrupted electrical power onboard a vessel.

The PCG said that personnel of the Coast Guard Station Eastern Palawan (CGSEP), Cuyo Municipal Police Station, and fishermen from Frabelle Fishing Corporation immediately responded to put out the fire.

“Ngunit matapos ang ilang oras na pag-aapula ng apoy, ang nasabing fishing vessel ay tuluyan nang lumubog (However, after a couple of hours of efforts in extinguishing the fire, the said fishing vessel eventually sank),” the

CGSEP said.

FV Victor 89 sank at around 9:40 a.m. on Monday or after almost six hours of firefighting efforts.

The two fishermen sustained first degree burns due to the incident and were brought to the hospital for immediate treatment. They were identified as Robert Macula, 32, from Leyte; and Arnold Magbanua, 38, from Palawan.

The PCG said an investigation was conducted to determine the cause of the fire.

Oil spill booms were also laid down by personnel of the CGSEP as authorities were determining if the sinking of the fishing vessel caused an oil leak.